A/C Valves

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There is only one expansion valve where you go into the firewall. That is what makes the system cool. I would look for NOS if you can find. I am not a air cond. guy but I did mine and it worked, lol. I cleaned all the hoses and used round gun cleaning brushes inside the hoses. You need the O-ring kit for the new refrigerant, they are green in color. Follow instructions as far as lube and how to charge.

Pressure test your condenser and evaporator before install for leak with air pressure and place in tank of water to look for bubbles.

You will be adding new connections for the gauges to charge the system there are two at the compressor, high and low pressure. You should get the Ford manual and go by it.

You will need a new Dryer tank that mounts on drivers side on radiator support out front. It has the filter in it also.

A pic I did not put with others and can get about any you need. The dash actually comes out pretty easy with maybe a dozen fasteners.

I used a new refrigerant not sold in US but in Canada called Dura Cool it is much more efficient that anything else out there.

Cheers,

David



 
Thank You David. 50% of my A/C was missing when i bought the car. Replacing parts from Classic Auto Air to try and stay factory correct

Have a new York compressor and dryer. Condenser tested and repainted. New hoses, quick release valves, and vacuum lines just arrived.

Still have to buy a clutch, idler pulley, expansion valve and service valves.

Once the A/C box removed from behind dash it will be going to a specialist A/C guy for refurb. Will get the heater core tested at same time

 
Hi Steve

I've put an Old Air kit in mine being a RHD conversion didn't want to bother trying to get the OEM air con working again besides PO had hacked in to the case

If you're after any specific parts you can have them so PM if interested

Cheers Mick

 
There is much debate about R12a/duracool/redtek, so please do some research before using it. It is a hydrocarbon... essentially it is propane and flammable. The EPA has not approved it for use, which is why it is illegal to sell or use as an automotive refrigerant in the US. I suspect it will void any product warranty on compressors and other A/C equipment. I have read that once used, it contaminates the system and you cannot go back to using a Fluorocarbon based refrigerant without a thorough system cleaning. Other than that it is a direct replacement for R12 and cools really well.

Personally, I may be overly concerned here, but with my luck, I'd have an engine fire and the insurance company would determine that I had residual Hydrocarbon based refrigerant in the A/C system and deny my claim. Not a big deal if I had used it a 97 Ford Probe.

 
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There is much debate about R12a/duracool/redtek, so please do some research before using it.  It is a hydrocarbon... essentially it is propane and flammable. The EPA has not approved it for use, which is why it is illegal to sell or use as an automotive refrigerant in the US. I suspect it will void any product warranty on compressors and other A/C equipment. I have read that once used, it contaminates the system and you cannot go back to using a Fluorocarbon based refrigerant without a thorough system cleaning. Other than that it is a direct replacement for R12 and cools really well.

Personally, I may be overly concerned here, but with my luck, I'd have an engine fire and the insurance company would determine that I had residual Hydrocarbon based refrigerant in the A/C system and deny my claim. Not a big deal if I had used it a 97 Ford Probe.
U must be in insurance,u r worrying too much on this. Propane powered cars don`t just blow up, why would a a.c. system?

 
LOL, I was one of those that converted vehicle to run on propane back in the 70's gas crunch. I was scared to death it was going to blow up and talked to the local gas company about it. He pointed out back and said we have a bunch of tanks with bullet holes in them and they did not blow up. 

The gas cannot burn without an oxygen supply. So even with a bullet hole the gas can only burn outside the tank not inside is what he explained to me. So I came home took a small hand held propane tank down to the field. Put some newspapers around it lit it and got back and shot a hole in the tank. It went flipping down the field and when I went to pick it up was covered in ice. No explosion, it cannot. So for years I had a 35 gallon tank of propane on the back of my 69 Ford van. 

If you have a space saver spare the original inflation cans had propane inside them. 

To fill my dry system with the Dura Cool it took only one little can I think 8 oz. maybe. 18 gallons of gas in the tank on our mustangs with a rear fill spout is way more dangerous.

I have never been an insurance guy. I do not have home owners or on my garage. When I did have home owners they did not pay the claim we made so why have it. It was Allstate also. Had a water line burst and flooded laundry, kitchen and hall way. Took months to dry out they tore the ceiling out, walls, insulation, floor cabinets and flooring. Allstate paid for that but never paid a penny for putting anything back so I had to pay out of pocket. 

The whole Freon thing was crazy anyway. Tell me how one of the heaviest gases got up to the ozone layer to destroy it or make a hole in it. The hole was discovered way before AC was popular back in the 1950's if I remember right.

 
Kind of off topic, but Walmart has switched to propane because it saves on there electric bill. I switch from r134 to r290 (propane) on 2 cars that still had York compressors. Works like R12, takes less than half the amount, works with any oil, even 10W30 engine oil. No more belt slap or engine stall when idling when the A/C kick in. It may not be legal here in the US yet, but the rest of the world says it's ok.

 
That's interesting, how / where did you mount the tank on the back of the van ?

 
That's interesting, how / where did you mount the tank on the back of the van ?
It was a saddle tank of a big truck so it would not fit under my van. A new tank was darned expensive that was skinny and long to go under the van. I made frame rail extensions and put a permanent platform on the back 2' out. It also had trailer hitch and I pulled car trailer and camper with no issue. The bumper was also moved out. 

I put the dual fuel set up on so you basically sat a propane carb on top of your carb. I had to raise the engine cover, dog house up to clear. So I had 35 gallons of propane and 21 gallons of gasoline. We drove to Montana several times non stop out and back to go hunting. The van would get 21 mpg on flat road. I built it in the race shop I worked in stock cam just TRW forged pistons and all TRW valve components. I think the coldest it was in was 30 deg. below zero. I pulled camper to Disney World with it and trailer across the U.S. several times. The 240 and 300 Ford 6 cylinders were bullet proof. Some of the local racers ran on circle track and kept up with V-8. You could cut Boss 351 heads apart and weld two together and spacing of cylinders were right so you had canted valve head. Drag racers did that. Ford also made SVO blocks for a while that were much stronger for drag racing. Use to have the fastest 1/4 mile for any inline 6 ever. It has 7 main bearings not 3 like the 144, 170, 200 and 250 Ford 6 cyl..

I stopped at an emissions check they had at a parts store one day and I had taken all the smog pump and air injectors off the 240 six in the van. It passed the current standards for the 1980's on propane so I switched over to gasoline and due to the inside of the engine being so clean it also passed on gasoline. 

I seem to recall that propane was 105 octane. I also shaved the head 1/16" to up compression some. If it was cold weather you better shut it off running gasoline when real cold the propane will not vaporize enough to get the engine started. They do have heaters for that and mine did have one but used hot water from the engine so until warm it did not vaporize except when warm outside.

I had a 500 gallon tank at home and when on the road could usually find at truck stops. Your motor oil lasted much longer stayed clean. If I were going to get a new vehicle would be CNG for sure. In China all the taxis and city buses ran on CNG much cleaner. Of course any pics I ever had of the van are in a shoe box or on slides somewhere. I just crushed the van last year it got hit in the rear and ruined it. I drove it crashed until I bought SVO. The van had 467,000 miles on it. Ford dealer was going to send Ford pics when I hit 500,000 but got crashed. 

Back in the 70's there was a plymouth or dodge 440 six pack drag car that ran on propane, called the Propane X I think. In years gone by when you passed a refinery and you saw the huge flame in the sky they were burning the waste gas from the refining process called propane, they could not store it as fast as they made it. They actually put the smell in it has no smell when pure. 

I am drawing a blank on the brand but the carb is somewhere in the barn. Ordered it at the local gas supplier. You still had to pay road tax on the propane when they delivered it to my home. Was cheaper than gasoline for a while and of course they caught on and raised the price.

 
That's interesting, how / where did you mount the tank on the back of the van ?
It was a saddle tank of a big truck so it would not fit under my van. A new tank was darned expensive that was skinny and long to go under the van. I made frame rail extensions and put a permanent platform on the back 2' out. It also had trailer hitch and I pulled car trailer and camper with no issue. The bumper was also moved out. 

I put the dual fuel set up on so you basically sat a propane carb on top of your carb. I had to raise the engine cover, dog house up to clear. So I had 35 gallons of propane and 21 gallons of gasoline. We drove to Montana several times non stop out and back to go hunting. The van would get 21 mpg on flat road. I built it in the race shop I worked in stock cam just TRW forged pistons and all TRW valve components. I think the coldest it was in was 30 deg. below zero. I pulled camper to Disney World with it and trailer across the U.S. several times. The 240 and 300 Ford 6 cylinders were bullet proof. Some of the local racers ran on circle track and kept up with V-8. You could cut Boss 351 heads apart and weld two together and spacing of cylinders were right so you had canted valve head. Drag racers did that. Ford also made SVO blocks for a while that were much stronger for drag racing. Use to have the fastest 1/4 mile for any inline 6 ever. It has 7 main bearings not 3 like the 144, 170, 200 and 250 Ford 6 cyl..

I stopped at an emissions check they had at a parts store one day and I had taken all the smog pump and air injectors off the 240 six in the van. It passed the current standards for the 1980's on propane so I switched over to gasoline and due to the inside of the engine being so clean it also passed on gasoline. 

I seem to recall that propane was 105 octane. I also shaved the head 1/16" to up compression some. If it was cold weather you better shut it off running gasoline when real cold the propane will not vaporize enough to get the engine started. They do have heaters for that and mine did have one but used hot water from the engine so until warm it did not vaporize except when warm outside.

I had a 500 gallon tank at home and when on the road could usually find at truck stops. Your motor oil lasted much longer stayed clean. If I were going to get a new vehicle would be CNG for sure. In China all the taxis and city buses ran on CNG much cleaner. Of course any pics I ever had of the van are in a shoe box or on slides somewhere. I just crushed the van last year it got hit in the rear and ruined it. I drove it crashed until I bought SVO. The van had 467,000 miles on it. Ford dealer was going to send Ford pics when I hit 500,000 but got crashed. 

Back in the 70's there was a plymouth or dodge 440 six pack drag car that ran on propane, called the Propane X I think. In years gone by when you passed a refinery and you saw the huge flame in the sky they were burning the waste gas from the refining process called propane, they could not store it as fast as they made it. They actually put the smell in it has no smell when pure. 

I am drawing a blank on the brand but the carb is somewhere in the barn. Ordered it at the local gas supplier. You still had to pay road tax on the propane when they delivered it to my home. Was cheaper than gasoline for a while and of course they caught on and raised the price.
Wow, with the 80 % expansion rule that would be a huge tank on the back of the van

That had to be about 4 feet tall and 20 inch diameter

 
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